


The Last Song

by tamaranianprincess



Series: A Mandalorian's Siren [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Additional Tags to Be Added, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon-Typical Violence, Child Loss, Cliff hangers, Din Djarin Needs a Hug, Don't want to spoil too much, Drama, Edging, Established Relationship, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Grief, Heavy Angst, Helmetless Din Djarin, Hurt/Comfort, I mean rough, Kissing, Medical Exam, Medical Procedures, Mentions of genocide, Mermaids, Minor Character Death, Miscarriage, OC is loosely based of of Ryn Fisher, Pregnancy, Read each chapter's warnings, Romance, Rough Sex, Sign Language, Siren, Sirens, Smut, Soft Din Djarin, Touching, but that's towards the end, dark topics, doctors visits, mute character, navarro - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 14:27:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29473200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tamaranianprincess/pseuds/tamaranianprincess
Summary: As the events of Cel's past come to light, so do the people. Nobody is safe, no matter how hard Din tries.**READ THE WARNINGS AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH CHAPTER**This is not a reader insert. Tagged for a wider audience.Updated weekly.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Original Female Character(s), Din Djarin/Reader, Din Djarin/You, Pedro Pascal/Original Female Character(s), Pedro Pascal/Reader, Pedro Pascal/You, The Mandalorian/Original Female Character(s), The Mandalorian/Reader, The Mandalorian/You, minor cara dune/fennec
Series: A Mandalorian's Siren [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2150157
Comments: 12
Kudos: 22





	1. The Bounty

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back! We are so very excited about this one, and we hope you are too! We have almost the entirety of this book finished. The updates will be slower this time though to allow time between each chapter. Each chapter will contain art and a link to a song that relates to that specific chapter!
> 
> Let us know in the comments what you think!
> 
> Please remember to check the warnings at the beginning of each chapter as this story contains heavy material.
> 
> Thank you to my absolutely amazing co-author and story illustrator @/edgyvege (tumblr). I could not have gotten this far without you. And a special thank you to @/pedro-pascal-love (tumblr) for helping me with some Star Wars lore that we needed!
> 
> Follow me over on tumblr @/starkdanverss !
> 
> Happy Reading!
> 
> WARNINGS: Abduction, descriptions of blood, gunshot wound.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cel recognizes Din’s bounty, resulting in a vivid dream about her past. A scared Din pulls the details from her, and they convince Cara to help them question the bounty before turning him in. But things don’t go according to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back! We are so very excited about this one, and we hope you are too! We have almost the entirety of this book finished. The updates will be slower this time though to allow time between each chapter. Help us reach more readers by reblogging, and let us know what you think! Please remember to check the warnings at the beginning of each chapter as this story contains heavy material. Thank you to my absolutely amazing co-author and story illustrator @/edgyvege (tumblr). I could not have gotten this far without you. And a special thank you to @/pedro-pascal-love (tumblr) for helping me with some Star Wars lore that we needed!
> 
> Each chapter will contain art and a link to a song that relates to that specific chapter!
> 
> Follow me on tumblr @/starkdanverss!
> 
> Chapter Warnings: Abduction, descriptions of blood, gunshot wounds.

**<https://youtu.be/zVGQWw4Ap6o> **

****

_Cel was jerked from her wiring work by a loud explosion, followed by a sudden rumble that shook the ship she was working on._

_“What was that?” She asked, looking to her friend who was in the middle of fixing the ship’s life support._

_“No idea, but it almost made me electrocute myself,” Sama says, wiping sweat off of her forehead._

_Cel stands up from her spot on the floor of the cockpit and walks out into the shop, only to see her mentor, Xyl’n, run in; her expression grave. There’s screaming behind her._

_“What is it?” Cel asks._

_“Go back into the ship, Cel.” Xyl’n replied._

_Cel raises a brow and walks forward, headed towards the door._

_Xyl’n steps back in front of her, a haunted look in her deep blue eyes._

_“Go back, Celestine. That’s an order.”_

_Now Cel is frustrated. She wasn’t a soldier. She didn’t ‘take orders’ like one._

_She quickly ran around Xyl’n, whose hand just barely missed Cel’s arm._

_Cel ran outside and saw several airships, her eyes following them to see what was going on._

_The explosions continued, making the ground beneath her feet quake._

_She ran past a line of buildings blocking her sight; screaming locals ran past her and into shelter. When she got to the beach, the wind knocked from her lungs._

_The airships were shooting missiles, several miles off the coast yet still visible, into the water._

_They were killing her people. Everyone was dying._

_She screamed, her knees almost giving out. Someone runs into her and holds her in place just as she went to run to the water._

_She thrashed against their hold, ignoring Xyl’n and Sama’s words that tried to talk sense into her. Xyl’n was holding her from behind, while Sama crouched in front of the Siren, trying to break through the terror that enveloped her._

_But Cel didn’t care. She didn’t care. Those were her people, and they were all dying._

_She finally pulled herself together enough to use her full strength, breaking free from Xyl’n’s hold, and used her speed to outrun them. She jumped into the water, ignoring the familiar pain of her transition as she pushed herself to swim._

Just fucking swim.

_But she didn’t have the chance. She felt a prick in her tail and she tried to ignore it as she beat her tail harder, moving faster. She got a little farther when her vision began to black out, her limbs feeling heavy. She tried fighting it, telling herself that she just needed to swim but the next thing she knew she was being dragged to the surface and she didn’t have the strength to fight it._

_She was pulled onto a boat where several men stood above her. One of them knelt down and flicked open a knife, while the others moved to hold her in place._

_“Hello, beautiful. What do you say we get rid of that pesky song of yours?”_

_The next thing she registered was white hot pain that seemed to burn her from the inside._

***

Cel wakes up gasping, desperately attempting to let out a scream, a noise, anything. She feels someone touch her and she jerks away, banging her head on the side of the bunk.

“Celestine, cyar’ika, it’s Din! It’s just me,” Din says, holding his hands up to show he wasn’t going to hurt her. He doesn’t move, afraid he’ll startle her even more than she already was.

Once Cel registers that it’s only Din and that she’s safe, safe he won’t hurt me, she breaks down into silent sobs.

Din holds her against him, soothing her with a quiet ‘ssshhhhh’ and whispering sweet words in her ear as he cards his hand through her long purple hair. She cries for a long while, wearing herself out. By the time she’s calmed down, she’s already half asleep.

Din leans back with her, still soothing her, and kisses her head as she falls back into a fitful sleep.

The next morning Din asks her what happened and at first Cel doesn’t want to tell him; she doesn’t want to relive it for a second time within just a few hours, but Din persists.

“Darling, you had me worried sick. I’ve never seen you like that. Please, tell me what’s weighing on your mind.” He pleads, holding her hands in his.

So she relents, regaling the stories of the day her people died and of her capture. She tells him about the airships, the explosions, the horror, the poison, the boat… The destruction of her voice.

He listens to it all without saying a word, silently comforting her every time she has to stop and collect herself.

When the story finally ends, Din is filled with so many emotions he isn’t sure what to do with himself. Fury, devastation, mourning… First she recognizes his bounty, even knows his name as Prato Nam, and now this. He doesn’t know which emotion to land on so he pushes his feelings aside for the time being because Cel needs him to be level headed.

***

A few days into their trip back to Navarro they’re eating supper in the cockpit, Grogu making a mess of his food. Cel cleans his chin with her sleeve when she signs, _“I want to talk to the bounty.”_

Din, who’s already finished with his meal, looks up in surprise, “Nam?”

Cel nods, but doesn’t offer anything else.

“Okay, can you tell me why?” He wipes his face with a small bit of cloth and sits up straight.

Cel is still for a moment before responding, _“I saw him on Coruscant towards the beginning of my capture. My captors brought me to him. I couldn’t hear most of what they were saying, but I heard them mention the attack and then my song. I remember he was mad that they destroyed my voice. After that I was traded and sold a few times before the couple from Naboo stole me off of a ship that was running spices.”_

So Din agreed. When they got back to Navarro, they’d let him out of carbonite long enough to let Cel ask her questions.

***

When they arrive on Navarro a week later, Din pulls Cara aside, telling her that he can’t turn the bounty in yet, that he may have information on the genocide and that Cel wants to question him. Cara is reluctant at first but ultimately agrees, wanting answers for herself as well.

They drop Grogu off at the school and head back to the Razer Crest where Cel waits.

Din releases Nam from the carbonite and sets him against the ship, hands and legs cuffed.

When Nam comes to, he looks at his captor, ready to mouth off when he notices someone behind him.

“Hello, beautiful... You look familiar.” He smiles at Cel.

Before Mando can do anything Cel quickly slips under his arm, lunging at the bounty with claws out. Just as her sharp nails meet his cheek with a minor slice, Mando reaches forward and takes Cel at the waist to stop her.

“Cel, calm down. Wait a minute,” Mando grounds out, struggling slightly against her, pulling her behind him again before looking back at Nam, “Eyes on me. You’re only out of that carbonite long enough to answer our questions. I suggest you do as you’re told.”

His eyes linger on Cel as he touches his cheek with bound hands, feeling blood trickle down his face before looking back at the Mandalorian, “What is it you would like to know?” He asks smugly with no intention of giving over any information.

Cel steps closer and Mando holds an arm out.

“Celestine-”

“I’m fine.” She signs, waiting for Mando to let her walk towards the bound man. He finally drops his arm and lets her closer, staying close behind her.

Cara is off to the side ready to intervene at a moment’s notice.

Cel kneels down to his level, looking him in the eyes, and signs as Cara translates.

“What do you know about the death of her people?” Cara asks.

Nam keeps his eyes on Cel as he replies, “You’ll have to be a little more specific, sweetie.”

“The Sirens,” Cara translates, “The death of the Sirens on Mon Cala.”

Color drains from Nam’s face and he looks at Cara, then Mando, then back to Cel.

“That’s how I know you,” A sly smirk pulls across his face, “You’re that bitch Siren those idiots rendered useless.”

Cel senses Mando step closer and she holds out a hand, stopping him. She signs again.

“Answer her question.” Cara says.

“I’m not saying shit,” Nam says, then spits on the ground between them, “Good riddance to your entire bloodline. The savages.”

“I would choose your next words very carefully,” Mando says, his hands balling into fists.

Nam looks up at him and sneers, “You’re fucking her, aren’t you? Good for you. The famous Mandalorian found himself a toy.”

Cara quickly slams her fist against his jaw causing his face to jut to the right, “Stop talking.” Cara says, massaging her knuckles.

Nam spits blood on the ground, “Or what? You’ll kill me? Won’t get paid then, will ya?” He looks over at Cel again, “The information dies with me, just like your voice died with your race, fucking bitch.”

Mando steps around Cel and kicks Nam in the stomach.

“Tell us what we want to know!” He says, grabbing him by the collar and shoving him back into the side of the ship.

“Over my dead body.” Nam spits with venom.

That breaks Mando’s resolve and he punches the man, throwing him to the ground, before punching again.

Cara grabs Cel and pulls her away. She’s consoling the upset Siren when a shot rings out and everything begins to move in slow motion.

Cara feels hot liquid spray on her face and she looks down to see Cel holding her stomach, blood gushing between her fingers, a red stain growing on her brown tunic.

Mando turns to see Cel collapsing into Cara, blood coating both of their hands. He feels his stomach churn and his heart shatter for the second time since knowing Cel. He grabs the blaster Nam had managed to pull from his own hip and holds it to Nam’s head in one swift movement, too furious to get a word out.

He hears Cara yelling behind him and he has to fight to break through the red fog clouding his mind as his finger hovers over the trigger.

“Mando! You need to help Cel, I’ll take care of him!”

He breaks his grasp on the man beneath him and runs to Cel, making sure not to look back or he won’t have the strength not to pull the trigger. He takes Cel from Cara, switching places as Cara easily gets Nam back into the ship to put him back into carbonite.

Just before she presses the button to release the freeze, Nam speaks.

“Darth Maul.”

Her hand stills above the activation button, “Excuse me?”

He looks up at her, his face bloody and beaten, “You’re looking for Darth Maul.”

They exchange a glance before she activates the gas, freezing him in the chamber once again. Once he’s frozen she runs back out to where Mando and Cel are on the ground.

“Get her into the ship, I’ll be right back.” Is all she says before running off.

Mando watches Cara disappear before he lifts Cel from her place on the ground and carefully carries her into the ship, placing her on the bed. He’s running around, his breath fogging his visor, grabbing anything helpful. He returns to her and presses a towel onto her wound.

“Come on, Cel. Stay with me,” He growls, unable to accept the fact that this may be the end. He looks at her face and her eyes are glossy as she looks at him. He can feel tears leaking past his eyes and he blinks them away.

Cel reaches a hand out and places it on his helmet where his cheek is.

And he suddenly doesn’t care that Cara is coming back. He doesn’t care that Cara will see him. Because he doesn’t want the last thing that Cel sees to be his fucking helmet.

He discards it and it clatters to the floor. He holds her hand to his cheek, flinching at the coldness of her skin.

She smiles at him as she wipes a tear away before her arm goes limp and her eyes fall closed.


	2. The Doctor's Visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Cel doesn't make a complete recovery, Din takes her to Denon to see the doctor Cara had told him about before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's up guys! Here is the second chapter! This one has some pretty heavy material, so please check the warnings and stay safe.
> 
> Thank you to my wonderful co-author @/edgyvege (tumblr) for helping me create this and for creating the beautiful art for each chapter, and to @/pedro-pascal-love (tumblr) for helping me with Star Wars lore!
> 
> WARNINGS: Slight description of skin wounds, pelvic exam (female), miscarriage, loss of a baby, grief, medical procedure (not graphic)

[ https://youtu.be/pUlX8ltm_JU ](https://youtu.be/pUlX8ltm_JU)

He knew he was getting himself into trouble by falling in love with her. But he couldn’t bring himself to care.

What had he done?

“Cel! Cel, come on. Open your eyes for me, cyare. Dank Farrik,  _ please-” _

“Let Grogu help,” Cara interrupts his pleas, placing the child onto the bed with Cel.

Mando hasn’t even realized she reentered the ship. He can tell she’s immediately drawn to his eyes, seeing them for the first time, but she pulls her eyes away and looks back to Cel who continues to bleed in front of them, her skin paling by the second.

Grogu scurries towards Cel’s middle where the open wound continues to ooze red and he immediately understands the severity of the situation. He places both hands on her skin, now visible as Mando had previously taken off her stained tunic, and closes his eyes.

His three fingered claw shakes slightly over Cel and, before their eyes, her skin begins to pull together, allowing her Siren healing to kick start as well. He continues as long as he can, Cara and Mando watching as the wound that had soiled her tunic was now completely gone.

Cel’s breathing began to even out, no longer shallow and labored, and they could finally take a breath.

***

“You have to eat, Celestine. You need it to heal.” Cara says, pushing a bowl of protein into the Siren’s hands.

_ “I’m not hungry, Cara, I just want to sleep-” _

Both women turn their heads when they hear Mando enter the small room with Grogu in his arms.

“Thank Maker. Mando, tell your girlfriend that she needs to eat.” Cara says as she crosses her arms.

Mando places Grogu onto the bed with his pseudo-mother, “Darling-”

_ “Now you’re just being unfair.” _ Cel pouts as she looks at Cara. She takes the bowl from the other woman and takes a tentative bite of the protein. 

Cara beams, “Wonderful!”

Grogu waddles over to Cel’s belly and makes a noise of frustration. He places a tiny hand on her belly again and closes his eyes.

Cel and Mando share a glance before Cel places a hand on Grogu’s little head, Mando speaking to him, “Grogu,” The kid looks up at him and makes a small noise of acknowledgement, “She’s okay. You healed her. You don’t have to keep-”

Grogu makes another noise and looks away, placing his other tiny hand on Cel’s belly. Suddenly Cel gasps, falling back onto her pillow, clutching at her middle. The bowl in her hands shattering onto the floor.

“Kid! What are you doing?” Mando chides as he picks up his son. Grogu continues making unhappy noises and reaches out for Cel once more.

Cara steps around the father and son duo, “Mando, go outside for a moment.” Her expression does not give any indication of motivation.

“What? Why-”

“Just do it!” Cara snaps.

Mando stays a moment longer, wondering what Cara is up to before he backs out of the room with Grogu in tow.

They’re outside for a few minutes before Cara comes out to join them.

“She needs to see a doctor. The one I told you about.”

Mando looks at her for a long moment, his eyes narrowing behind his helmet as he asks, “What's going on?”

Cara doesn’t directly look at him, and that’s a red flag, “I… Can’t say for sure. But she isn’t human, and none of us are equipped to handle a Siren injury properly. She needs to go to that doctor,” Now she is looking at him, exactly where his eyes are through the visor, “And  _ only  _ that doctor.”

***

The trip to Denon is a few days. 

Luckily, Cel didn’t seem to be in any immediate danger, so he wasn’t holding his breath the entire time. 

Still, Grogu seemed upset, reaching his small hand out in her direction when they got close, and Cara seemed like she was hiding something.

What wasn’t she telling him? Through the holo comm Din can tell she’s standing rigidly and keeping information from him. She shares the name that Nam said just before she refroze him in carbonite, but keeps some piece of information for herself.

He left Grogu with Cara and Karga on Navarro so he didn’t have to worry about him at the same time as Cel. Taking care of a baby while worrying for Cel’s life was too much to handle at the moment.

Cel mostly stays in bed the entire trip, feeling lethargic and sickly. 

Din continued to offer her food and drink as Cara made him promise, but Cel was still reluctant and didn’t consume as much as she needed; her skin started to dry and become more textured in places like her shoulders and knees.

When they got within a day of Denon, Din pulled out the card Cara had given him again.

_ Doctor Caddel, Family Health Practitioner of Denon _ , he reads over again before glancing at Cel, who was asleep in her normal spot in the cockpit. She had enough energy that day to climb the ladder to be with him.

As Din pulls a lever the ship falls out of hyperspace with a low buzz and a gentle push before his back rests again in the pilot seat. He glances over his shoulder to Cel who managed to sleep through the drop and he decides to attempt a smooth landing to let her get as much rest as she can.

When the landing gear of the Razor Crest opens, the noise awakens Cel who blinks slowly, taking in the new scenery out of the cockpit’s windows.

“We’ve made it, cyare.” Din coos as he finishes the landing sequence and then spins his chair to face Cel who was now sitting up.

“ _ I don’t know if… _ ” Her arm’s fall into her lap and she sighs.

“I know you’re tired, but we’ve got to see this doctor.”

Cel nods before standing slowly.

Din basically carries her over his shoulder down the cockpit’s ladder and to the lowering ramp of the Crest. They walk slowly, Din keeping his arm around her waist as support and to catch her if she loses strength.

The hanger is nestled tightly in the continuing city streets that seemed to cover the planet’s surface.

“Almost there.” Mando says quickly, feeling the gate of Cel’s steps get smaller and smaller as she starts to stumble alongside him.

A few minutes later the pair make it to an angular building with ‘Doctor Caddel’ on the door.

When the door opens the two are met with curious eyes from an array of people sitting in the building’s waiting room.

Mando quickly gets Cel to an empty chair where she winces and holds her stomach. He is slow to take his eyes off of her to make sure she is settled in the chair, but when Cel’s shoulders relax against the backrest he takes large strides to the front desk and the human woman behind the counter.

Having seen him enter with Cel, the human woman at the desk looks up to Mando with a confused and curious expression, “Do you have an appointment?” Her voice is deep and kind.

Mando sighs, “I need to see Doctor Caddel.”

“I- I’m sorry, sir, but you’ll need to make an appointment-”

“My wife-” Mando lies, “She’s very sick and I was told he would be the best to help.”

“I’m sorry-”

Mando quietly slides a small stack of credits onto the counter which catches her eye.

She looks at the currency presented to her and then back to the metal man looking down at her. She slips the credits into a pocket in her coat and stands, “I will see if he has an opening.”

“Thank you.” Mando replies, a weight lifted off his shoulders.

After a few minutes the receptionist returns with a smile, “Doctor Caddel will see you after the patients he currently has waiting.”

Mando looks over the busy waiting room and then nods in agreement. He slowly makes his way back to Cel, very aware of all the eyes watching his shiny form pass them.

“Good news. We just have to wait a bit longer. Then we will get some answers.” Mando relays quietly as he takes the empty chair beside her.

Cel nods as she still has her eyes closed. She leans toward Mando and rests her cheek on his pauldron, enjoying the cool feeling of the metal.

It takes longer than he wants, but eventually the receptionist gestures a small wave in Mando’s direction and a nod.

Mando quickly stands, causing a startle to a few people waiting near him, and takes Cel’s arm to help her to stand.

The other patrons watch as the Mandalorian guides the small and frail figure past them to the door leading to the rest of the building.

A young man meets them once out of the waiting room, “My name is Gavyn. I will just be collecting some basic information before the doctor sees you.” He raises his clipboard before showing the two to their room.

They come upon a simple room, desk and cabinets on the side, a couple chairs against the far wall, and a larger reclinable chair in the center. Mando helps Cel to sit before taking a seat in a chair to the side.

“May I have your name?” Gavyn smiles as he lifts his pen to paper.

Cel looks to Mando and back to Gavyn.

Gavyn’s smile falters slightly as he glances to Mando.

“She communicates by signing. I can translate for her.” Mando nods and Cel does her best to smile.

“Alright. May I have your name?” Gavyn asks again.

“Cel…” he thinks quickly. “Djarin. Cel Djarin.”

Gavyn nods as he writes his notes. “And Ms. Djarin, may I ask what species you are?” He glances at Mando.

“She’s human-” His voice catches, “Can we just speak with the doctor, please?”

Gavyn nods, “He’ll be just in. Cel, what is it you are here for?”

“She is struggling with recovering from an injury that.. has mostly healed.” Mando answers.

Cel isn’t even signing at this point, she’s just fighting to stay upright in the chair.

Gavyn nods, continuing to write, “What kind of injury?”

Mando stands, beginning to lose his patience, “Look. Just get us the doctor. Now.” 

Gavyn cowers, looking between the Mandalorian and Cel before quickly leaving the room.

Mando slowly turns to Cel who gives him a smile.

“ _ I love you. _ ” She signs weakly.

In just a second the door is open again and an older man enters the room. His hair is short, in white coils sprouting from his dark skin, “Cel,” He extends his hand and Cel manages to reciprocate his handshake, “My name is Doctor Caddel. It is very nice to meet you. How can I help you today?” He glances at Mando as Gavyn had made him aware that there would be a translator.

“Is this room secure?” Mando asks sternly.

“Just you both and me.” He smiles as he puts on white gloves he removed from his coat pocket.

“Cel is not fully human. She is-”

“A siren.” He finishes Mando’s sentence as he already is holding Cel’s wrist gently.

Mando’s facade falters for a second, “How can you tell?” He asks intently.

“Humans don’t have this iridescent nature to their skin. Curious…” 

Mando watches closely as he lifts her chin slightly and looks into her eyes.

“Excuse me, Ms. Djarin, but I didn’t think there were any more of your kind. Haven’t seen one like you in a long time.” He continues to look over her skin, noting the rough patches with a nod.

“She was shot with a blaster.” Mando admits as he moves to the edge of his chair attempting to maintain eyesight on Cel who was silently complying with the small movements of her body under the doctor’s hands.

“A blaster! My!” His eyes are wide as he looks her over. “Siren healing is no joke!” He chuckles as he moves the tips of his stethoscope into his ears.

“We had a bit of help,” Mando is weary to share too much information, “But even though her skin is healed, she is still ill,” There is a slight pleading in his voice. “She is very weak and barely eats.”

He continues to describe Cel’s symptoms as Doctor Caddel moves the metal end of his stethoscope to her chest.

“She sometimes feels pain in her stomach and she has vomited a few times since it happened-”

“Has she bled?” He asks very matter-of-factly.

Mando is startled, falling silent, not sure how to answer.

“Lie down, dear.” He guides Cel back as he reclines the chair slightly.

She complies and Caddel begins to palpate her stomach gently, looking to the wall beside them as he felt inch by inch.

“I… I don’t think she has.” Mando stutters out his delayed answer, looking to Cel who has her eyes strictly on the white gloved hands that move across her abdomen.

“Mmmm.” Caddel sighs quickly before moving his hands across her stomach to the opposite side.

“What?” Mando asks quietly.

“Give me just a moment, I will be right back.” The doctor says as he leaves the room.

Cel’s eyes are wide in fear as she looks over at Mando.

He scoots closer to her, removing a glove and holding her hand, squeezing it, “I’m sure everything is fine, cyare.”

She smiles weakly at him. She wants to believe him, but there’s a sinking feeling in her gut telling her that Mando is very wrong.

Doctor Caddel reenters the room with a hovering cart. He moves it next to Cel, Mando moving to give him space but still staying within reach of her.

Doctor Caddel squeezes some gel onto Cel’s belly, turning on a monitor and placing a small device where the gel now was. He moves the device, eyes glued to the monitor. He sees something that shouldn’t be there normally.

“I’m sorry, Miss Djarin, but this next test is a little invasive,“ He says as he wipes off the gel and places the small device back onto the cart, “I’m going to have Gavyn bring you a gown to get dressed in and then I will be back.”

A moment after Doctor Caddel leaves the room, Gavyn enters for just a moment to hand Cel a soft blue gown. Din has to help Cel out of her clothes and into the gown since she can hardly stand on her own. He folds her clothes and places them neatly on one of the chairs against the wall.

There’s a small knock on the door before the doctor enters again. He reclines Cel’s chair even further, then takes a seat and pulls the hovercart over to her feet, pulling two stirrups out.

“I need you to place your feet on these. This exam requires me to take this wand,” He says, lifting another device from the cart, “And place it up into your vaginal canal. It may be uncomfortable, but there is something that I need a closer look at and this is the only way to do so.”

Cel whips her head to Mando, her pupils wide in fear.

He stands up and leans down to her, holding her hands with one hand and placing the other on her head, “I’m right here, cyar’ika.” He whispers, feeling guilty that she couldn’t see his eyes as he tried to console her.

She nods after a moment, moving her feet to the rests on each side of the chair.

“Lean back and take a deep breath,” The doctor says, moving closer, “You’ll feel some pressure.”

Cel closes her eyes and Mando’s heart squeezes as a tear escapes her closed lids. He moves his hand from her head to wipe the stray tear.

Doctor Caddel is quiet as he moves the wand, pressing a few buttons on the monitor. Mando turns to watch him, trying to see what the doctor was seeing on the ultrasound. Unfortunately, he had absolutely no idea what the hell he was looking at.

Doctor Caddel finally removes the wand, letting Cel pull her legs back together. He pushes the cart away slightly and looks to his patient, “I’m very sorry to inform you, Ms. Djarin,” Doctor Caddel says as he takes a seat on his own chair, “But your baby does not have a heartbeat.”

Mando’s face fell, a choked sound coming from his throat.  _ What? A baby?  _ He thinks to himself.  _ She was pregnant? How the hell had they not noticed?  _ Sure, she had gained a bit of a tummy and extra weight in her torso and face. But he figured that was because she was being fed properly now, compared to her time in captivity.

Cel’s eyes widened as they shot open, looking between the doctor and Mando.

“ _ No. No, that can’t be. _ ” She signs quickly with a burst of energy.

“That can’t be.” Mando repeats.

“I’m afraid so,” Doctor Caddel sighs and raises her chair, “Am I correct to assume you did not know of the pregnancy?”

Mando nods numbly, and Cel quickly wraps her arms around her stomach, the tears in her eyes blurring her vision. She’s beginning to hyperventilate, tears rolling off her face and dripping to her gown as she stares between Mando, the doctor, and her stomach under her arms, “ _ No, no, no, no. _ ” She signs one handedly.

“I will give you two a moment.” He removes his gloves and quietly leaves the room.

Din watches the door close and with one step he shoves one of the chairs under the door handle as a temporary lock. He swiftly removes his helmet and turns back to Cel who is silently sobbing, holding her stomach.

He quietly steps forward, resting a hand on Cel’s shoulder as she shakes with cries under it. “Celestine.” He breathes, but she is inconsolable. He’s now crying freely as he watches Cel’s body vibrate, her mouth open to wail, but no sound being released, “I’m so sorry.” His apology is barely a whisper.

Din moves onto the small empty space of the chair next to Cel and wraps his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into his plated chest, pressing his lips to her scalp.

“ _ How could this happen? _ ” She signs just clearly enough for Din to barely catch it.

Din thinks back to their nights in Nevarro and on the Crest. They didn’t have any protection to use and apparently their methods had not prevented conception as they thought it would. It hadn’t even been a conversation. Just a tiny thought in the back of Din’s mind when they were falling asleep in each other’s arms.

“I love you, Celesetine.” Din speaks into the top of her head, holding her as she continues to cry.

After several minutes, Cel regains her breath and moves herself away from Din to rest back against the chair again.

Din stands, places his helmet on, and fixes the chair that had been braced against the door. He slowly peers outside where Doctor Caddel was leaning against a counter, waiting patiently.

With an understanding nod he reenters the room and smiles tenderly as he looks to Cel who laid back in the chair, her face completely flushed red and her eyes puffy from crying.

“What do we need to do now?” Mando asks.

“There are two options,” He says, turning to look at Cel, “You can either let the fetus pass naturally, or we can admit you into our clinic where we will administer a medication that will allow you to pass the fetus under medical supervision.” The doctor looks to Mando to gauge his reaction, but it is useless through the metal covering his body.

Mando thinks about the options given, though he knows which one they need to choose; Cel has already suffered enough. He doesn’t want to be lightyears away from the only doctor that can help her if something goes wrong.

But it is ultimately Cel’s decision. He looks over at her and asks, “What do you prefer to do?”

But it seems as if her thoughts mirrored his own, “ _ Will it hurt? _ ” Cel signs as she looks between Mando and Doctor Caddel.

“Will it hurt her?” He relays her question.

The older man sucks air through his teeth, “We will attempt to make it as painless as possible. Based on my assessment you are only three weeks into your pregnancy. It doesn’t seem like a long time, but Siren fetal growth is exponentially quicker than that of a human’s. Siren pregnancies normally last about four to five months.”

Cel reaches for Mando’s hand and he takes it tightly.

“Can I be with her?” he asks, near defeated.

“Of course. I will get Gavyn on her paperwork-”

“No files. There cannot be proof we came here.” Mando is trying to be as imposing as he can manage.

Doctor Caddel nods, “We will prepare for the procedure to occur immediately,” He looks to Cel, “I will cancel the rest of my appointments today.”

“ _ Thank you. _ ” Cel smiles wearily, new tears welling in her eyes.

“Thank you.” Mando echoes verbally.

Doctor Caddel leaves the room and both Cel and Din sigh.

He moves his chair closer to Cel and sits in silence.

“ _ I can’t believe this is happening, _ ” Cel holds her stomach, “ _ This can’t be happening. _ ” She squeezes her eyes letting more tears slide down her cheeks.

“You will get through this, cyar’ika,” He holds her forearms tightly. “I’ll be right beside you the entire time.”

Gavyn enters the room and gestures for the pair to follow. They are led down two hallways further into the building where it starts to become more stuffy and sterile. Cel is brought to a bulkier version of the chair she had in her exam room and sits. Doctor Caddel enters with two other women they had not met yet and one begins an IV in Cel’s left arm while Mando watches closely.

“I’m right here.” He says as he holds her right hand.

The next events begin to happen quickly as the doctor moves to the end of the chair that is now reclined back as far as it can go. The medical assistants are speaking calmly to the doctor as they guide Cel through the ordeal.

Mando can tell Cel is screaming. Nothing is coming out, but she is  _ screaming. _

In just under an hour one of the assistants moves quickly from Cel’s side to the doctor’s, bringing a sterile table closer before carting it away from the chair.

“ _ I don’t want to see. _ ” Cel signs as she cries, looking into Mando’s eyes and averting her gaze from the doctor still working at the end of her reclined chair.

“I’m right here. I’m right here.” Mando soothes her the best he can through the modulator of his helmet, his ungloved hand running through her hair.

And then it was over.


	3. Exploring Intentions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the events of Cel's miscarriage, Cel and Din have a heart to heart about what they want for the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter three!!! Thank you to my wonderful co-author @/edgyvege (tumblr) for helping me create this and for creating the beautiful art for each chapter, and to @/pedro-pascal-love (tumblr) for helping me with Star Wars lore!
> 
> WARNINGS: Miscarriage, loss of child, grief, mentions of medical procedure

****

**You Are The Reason -** <https://youtu.be/ShZ978fBl6Y>

Cel was given more medication, and as time went on she sat more upright. Color gradually returned to her face and she blinked without her eyelids dragging so slow over her eyes.

As Mando and Cel sat while she recovered, Doctor Caddel reentered the room, “I was hoping to share a bit more information with you both, if you are ready to have a discussion.”

Cel looks to Mando and nods.

He begins to share very useful information about Sirens and how they can better thrive in their human form. He shares a recipe for a salve that can help sooth her skin and gives them a list of planets that have natural bodies of water that would be safe for her to visit.

“Sirens are still very well equipped even in their human form from quickened healing, incredible strength and fast speeds, to their pheromones-”

Mando tilts his head and interrupts, “Pheromones?”

“Yes.” The doctor nods and looks to Cel who has perked up a bit at the mention of it. They hadn’t discussed what happened that night when she had to hurt herself to get Mando to snap out of it.

“Is that why when we were… Getting intimate, I started to feel... feel like I was on autopilot? All I wanted was to just-“ he stops and relaxes his shoulder that had tensed up and folds his hands together, slightly uncomfortable with the topic, “I just needed her.” 

“What you are explaining is the effect of a Siren’s pheromones, as persuasive as their song, maybe even greater due to the proximity needed for them to work. The song can lure humans across great distances. Their pheromones give a siren complete control in close proximity during a sexual encounter and over time can be controlled as the Siren grows to sexual maturity. Based on your age I assume this instance you have explained may have been your first release. The best way to learn what triggers this and how to control it is to, well, practice.”

“ _ Do you know how to stop it from working? _ ” Cel signs.

“Is there a way to stop her pheromones from working once it has started?” Mando echoes. 

Doctor Caddel chuckles, “Just practice.”

Cel nods thinking,  _ I can do that. _

Doctor Caddel continues to share some information about Sirens and their human forms. About how pregnancy is for humans and how it is slightly different for her as a Siren. How her Siren form can handle a pregnancy much easier due to anatomy and other helpful tips regarding Siren reproduction.

The sun has gone down on Denon by now as the appointment wraps up and Mando and Cel no longer have questions.

Doctor Caddel removes his gloves and starts to sort some papers he has and says, “You best find a comfortable place to settle down, far away from the parts of the galaxy that the Empire still occupies, and live a happy and safe life away from the evil likes of Darth Maul.”

Mando whips his head in the direction of the doctor, “How do you know that name?” he growls.

“He’s the reason I am on this planet. My family and I fled when he attacked Mon Cala and…” He looks between the warrior and his patient, deciding not to finish the sentence, “And we have been here ever since.”

Mando stands and extends his hand holding a pouch of credits. “Thank you. For everything.”

The doctor shakes his head and holds out an outstretched palm, refusing the currency. The two men shake hands and Cel stands slowly, and extends her arms.

The doctor happily obliges and pulls her into a firm embrace.

“You’re welcome back here anytime, no appointment needed.”

The two leave the building as slowly as they had made it there and through the dark streets, they make their way back to the Razor Crest.

***

“I’m so sorry, Cel.” Cara says as she pulls the smaller woman into an embrace.

When they had arrived back on Navarro, Cara and Cel had gone to Cara’s small office to talk while Mando went to find Karga to see if there was any information on Darth Maul. He has talked briefly about him to Cel, but Din mostly let her rest on the ride back.

Each woman sat in their own chair, facing each other. 

“When the kid kept trying to heal your stomach… I had a hunch, but I didn’t want to say anything without being certain-”

_ “It’s okay. It wouldn’t have done anything to help even if you had said something,”  _ Cel signs. Her movements stutter as she goes to speak again, unsure how to put her thoughts into words,  _ “When we learned about the pregnancy and the miscarrage, I was devastated. The same man who helped take my people from me took my baby as well. And I didn’t even know about it until it was gone,”  _ She sniffles and wipes a few tears from her eyes. Cara places a comforting hand on her knee, and she continues,  _ “But now, I feel… Relieved? I don’t know if I’m ready to be a mother. And what about D-”  _ She stutters her movements again, correcting herself,  _ “What about Mando? I know he has Grogu, but maybe he isn’t ready for a second child. Does that make me a horrible person? To be relieved that my own baby is gone?” _

“Cel,” Cara starts, grabbing her friend’s hands, “You could never do anything to make me believe you are in any way a bad person. You and Mando just began your lives together, and you’re still recovering from years of trauma. If you’re not ready to have a baby, you aren’t ready. Don’t let anyone, not Mando and not even yourself, make you think otherwise.”

Cel nods, still sniffling and squeezing Cara’s hands. Cel imagines it’s what her heart is feeling. Like someone has their hands wrapped around it and is squeezing...  _ Hard _ .

Cara continues, “For what it’s worth, though, you’re already a mother to the little green one. And an amazing one at that. Grogu is one lucky kid.”

Cel silently giggles, pulling her hands from Cara’s to sign,  _ “I guess that makes us even luckier parents.” _

“That’s my girl,” Cara says, patting the Siren’s knee, “I think you need to talk to Mando, though. This is something that you both need to be on the same page about. Talk to him about what you want in the future, what he wants. Because if this thing between the two of you is as serious as it looks, you should have the same ideas going into this further.”

Cel nods, knowing Cara is right. They needed to talk about what happened. About what they are to each other and what they want; what they need.

***

They’re staying on Navarro for a few days to let Cel rest and recover, so Cara sets them up in the same Inn as before, this time sharing a room since Din’s room went vacant last time anyway.

They’re laying on their shared bed, Din sitting on the bed with his back against the wall, Cel’s head in his lap. He’s looking down at her, carding a hand through her hair. He’s unable to see her face, so he thinks she’s asleep.

He thinks about the events of these past few days. They’re weighing heavily on him.

He thinks of his slip up, causing Cel to get shot in the first place. He hates himself for it. If he wasn’t so consumed by the disgusting words that Prato Nam had spit at Cel… He should have been more careful. Her blood had been on his hands; literally and figuratively.

Then come to find out she was carrying his child, only to lose it because of his carelessness. Not even getting a chance to know the little one. He remembers the way her body shook in his hold, her silent sobs are burned into his mind.

The death of their child was an incredible burden on him, and he would never forgive himself for it.

Cel sits up and faces him.

_ “I can hear you thinking from here,”  _ She signs, and leans forward to wipe a few stray tears from his cheeks. He didn’t even notice that he was crying until now.

He smiles lovingly at her, grabbing her hand and placing a gentle kiss on her palm.

She pulls it away and signs,  _ “What’s weighing on your mind, my love?”  _ She ends her question with a hand over his heart.

He sighs in resignation and looks to his partner’s eyes. 

She’s looking at him intently, holding his hand gently in her own, “ _ I’m here for you. _ ” She signs, knowing how much the two had just recently gone through.

“I almost got you killed,” He squeezes her hands, “I killed our-” His voice cracks and he bites his lips, more tears falling.

Cel’s eyes glimmer in response as she moves closer to him, wiping more tears, “ _ You didn’t do that. _ ”

Din doesn’t agree and it is tearing at his heart to see Cel know how broken he was. Cel had her moment at Doctor Caddel’s and now the emotions are overwhelming for Din. He is normally a pillar of strength, but in this moment he is rubble.

Cel consoles her Mandalorian just the same, rubbing his back as he sobs. She knew Din was upset over the entire ordeal, but it was slightly surprising how hurt he was that their baby was gone.  _ If it had been different, would he even want a baby? _ Cel wonders.

Cel pushes against Din’s arm slightly signaling him to sit up. She lifts her hands, “ _ It is not your fault. It was Prato Nam. I know you would never hurt me. You would never hurt our child. _ ” Cel glances at Grogu who is sleeping in his open pram beside the bed.

“But I-” Din tries to continue between sobs, also looking at Grogu.

Cel grabs his face and turns him towards her, forcing him to look at her,  _ “No ‘but’s. It was not, nor will it ever be, your fault.” _

For some reason, that makes Din cry even harder. He clutches Cel, who’s holding onto him tightly.

Grogu stirs slightly at the sound of him sobbing.

“I know we didn’t know until it was too late but…” He sniffles and wipes at his eyes, “I just wanted to be a good dad.” His face turns into a grimace.

Cel brings her hand to his cheek, “ _ You are a good dad. _ ”

Din pushes into her free hand at his cheek, his eyebrows still pulled together.

“ _ You saved Grogu. _ ” Cel reminds him.

Din binks slowly and nods.

“ _ You saved me. _ ” Cel’s eyes are now welling with tears.

Din takes her in one swift motion, pulling her close and firmly pressing his lips to hers, their noses pressing into the tears on each other’s cheek.

Cel pushes him onto his back as she straddles his lap, her hair falling over his face and she continues to press her lips to his with so much force that her teeth scratch against her lips.

“I love you,” Din gasps, coming up for air before connecting to her lips once more.

While still kissing Cel signs, “ _ I love you too, _ ” but she isn’t sure Din saw.

He pulls her down onto him, his bulky arms wrapped tightly around her torso, keeping her as close as he could while kissing over her cheek, her nose, her jaw.

Her arms were pinned between their bodies so she just let him kiss her.

He kisses small pecks on her chin and then buries his face into her neck, still stifling a sob. His hold on her was so tight it almost hurt, but she didn’t have the heart to move.

Just when he loosened his grip Cel’s hands found their way to his chest allowing her to push herself away, “ _ Din, I want to be with you forever, _ ” She glances to Grogu who is still peacefully sleeping, “ _ Losing our baby made me think maybe I wasn’t ready to be a mother, but I’ve made up my mind. I want to build a family with you. _ ”

He moves Cel slightly allowing him to sit up, “Celestine, I promise I  will give you the life that you want,” He is holding her hand tightly, smiling, “We will find someplace safe. I will marry you and we will have children, so many children!” He says, attacking Cel’s face in kisses, sending her into a fit of silent giggles. But then he pulls away, his face somber and demeanor serious, “But first I will kill Darth Maul.”


	4. Narrow Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In their attempt to track and gather intel on Maul, Din pulls a risky move and causes a run in with the Sith himself, leaving Cel to get them both off of the planet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter four!! :D
> 
> Thank you to my wonderful co-author @/edgyvege (tumblr) for helping me create this and for creating the beautiful art for each chapter, and to @/pedro-pascal-love (tumblr) for helping me with Star Wars lore!
> 
> Warnings: Brief violence, vague description of minor injuries/blood, light smut

Song: Guillotine - [https://open.spotify.com/track/2FK1qmw8XNBqUe5CcgTVnE?si=MA1LQXTjSlGjB0vAh3EUuQ](https://open.spotify.com/track/2FK1qmw8XNBqUe5CcgTVnE?si=MA1LQXTjSlGjB0vAh3EUuQ)

Mando is camped out on Batuu, waiting for any sign of Darth Maul at the compound his search had brought him to.

It’s been six months since the incident with Prato Nam. In that time, Din and Cel have traveled the galaxy collecting more intel on Maul. It was more difficult than Din would have liked. He trusted very few people, and even less were willing to talk to him about the man.

He’s unsure how he has never heard of the name until now, but he doesn’t dwell on it.

When they arrived on Batuu, Din had ordered Cel to stay in the ship and to keep it locked down. He wasn’t familiar with the planet and didn’t know what enemies could be lying in wait in addition to Maul. She was hesitant at first, wanting to go with him, but he refused.

“I’m not letting you get hurt again,” He had told her as he holstered his weapons, “Enough is enough. Besides, this is just a recon mission-”

_ “Exactly! Just recon! So I wouldn’t be in danger-” _

Din grabbed her wrists, stopping her argument and leaving it hanging in the air, “Cyar’ika, you are in danger every second this monster lives. I wanted you to stay on Navarro, but I let you come because I know you’d be safest with me, even here on Batuu. I know it’s selfish, but I can’t stand you being out of my sight. But this is where I have to draw the line. My love, please…  _ Please-” _

Cel moved her hands and placed them on his cheeks, pulling him into a kiss. For a moment, just a split second, Din forgets where they are and all he could think about was getting her into bed, until Cel pulled away and signed again.

_ “I’ll stay on the ship with Grogu. But please be safe, and don’t be gone too long. Just recon, right?” _

Din nods and kisses her forehead before putting his helmet on.

“Just recon.”

And that's what it was.

Until it wasn’t.

It’s a large fortress that seems mostly abandoned; moss grows up the walls and vines peeks out of and curls through the cracks due to the building’s age. Mando guesses it got this way when the Empire fell. Nobody would think to investigate an abandoned headquarters making it a good place to hide, which is probably why Darth Maul was here.

Mando had been camped out on a small mountain for four days before he saw the first sign of Maul as he was leaving the building, alone. The man is wearing a thick black cloak, but through the sight of the amban blaster, Mando is able to easily see the red and black on the man’s face.

Just the sight of him makes Mando’s blood boil. He wants to vaporize Darth Maul where he stands.

So he did.

Or he tried to, at least.

Mando pulled the trigger of the blaster, but Maul had moved just before the blast could reach him.

It was as if he knew it was coming.

“Fuck!” Mando curses, dropping behind the rock he had been propped up on, glancing between the rocks and grass before him as if it would clarify the intense confusion that coursed through him. He throws the gun over his shoulder, moving quickly into the thick of the forest, branches and vines snapping and tearing as he runs. He ran the way he came, knowing he needed to get out of there.

Something wasn’t right. How did Maul move out of the way so  _ quickly _ ?

Mando slides down a muddy hill, coming to a stop before a creek. He jumps it, but is knocked over by an invisible force mid-air, sending him crashing into the water below him before he could make it across.

He pulls himself up quickly, his gloves fully soaked as they stabilize him on the small rocks in the streaming water. With practiced ease he reaches for the blaster from his hip and aims it in the direction of the hit.

There, in front of him, stood Darth Maul; double ended lightsaber in hand.

_ Dank Farrik!  _ Mando thinks. Nobody told him Maul was fucking  _ Sith _ .

“I don’t believe we’ve met,” Maul says across the distance, his voice impossibly loud, “May I at least have the name of the Mandalorian making an attempt on my life?” His voice is too calm. Too easy going.

Nothing like the voices of those who know a Mandalorian is hunting them.

Mando doesn’t answer, he just pulls the trigger, shooting for a second time, but Maul brings up his saber and deflects the hit perfectly.

Maul tilts his head forward with a slow devious grin.

Mando shoots again, and again, and several times more as he stumbles backward, struggling to stand before he turns away to begin running.

He gains some distance before he trips on a tree root, knocking his helmet into a rock. He holds the metal as his ears ring, wishing he could check for blood but there isn’t time. He tries to stand with black spitting his vision, but is knocked down again causing his visuals through the helmet to be packed with dirt as Mando feels a boot dig into his back.

There’s no time to think. Mando grabs the beskar spear as he rolls over and blocks an incoming hit from the red lightsaber.

Maul is looming over him with a wrathful grimace, taking a step for every inch Mando manages to get. They’re taking turns throwing hits and blocking them. Eventually Mando gets into a position where he can kick Maul’s legs from under him, sending him to the ground.

He doesn’t waste a second as he stands and books it. 

Maul chases him a few more miles, getting in several hits in the process. Mando has barely put a scratch on the other man yet he can feel his own blood trickling down his neck.

Once Mando is close enough, he pulls out the comm link to the ship.

“Start the ship!” He yells, praying to everything that Cel had heard him.

He sees the shining metal of the ship in the distance, having made it out of the brush of the forest, and is afraid to check behind him. But he needs to know how close Maul is to him and the ship.

He glances over his shoulder and fires several shots, seeing Maul just several paces behind him.

“Don’t open the ship!” He yells into the comm. He is going to have to fight Maul off before Cel opens the ramp. He can’t put her in danger anymore than she already is. He just  _ can’t.  _

As he gets closer to the ship, he’s knocked down  _ again  _ and he’s afraid that this is it. He’s outmatched. He can’t go up against a fucking Sith by himself.

Just then he sees the lightsaber come down on him, hitting the arm guards crossed in front of him. Suddenly he hears a familiar song, and his mind goes numb.

***

Cel began to get the ship ready to take off when she heard blaster shots, before Din even told her to do so. She had quickly closed Grogu in his pram to keep him safe and out of the way, but even he could tell something was wrong.

She looks out the window and sees Din being chased by who she can only assume is Darth Maul; the blur of red and black following close behind him.

They’re getting close to the ship now, and she hears Din’s voice again.

“Don’t open the ship!”

**_Don’t_ ** _ open the ship? How is he supposed to get to safety? _

It then occurs to her that Din is going to try to fight the man off to keep him from getting inside. There’s no way he would let Maul get close to her and Grogu. But from what she can see, he’s already in rough shape and losing the fight. 

She squeezes her eyes shut and grits her teeth as thoughts flash through her mind eye and then an idea springs to her mind. She jumps down to the hull, slams the button, and opens the ramp against his wishes. She grabs the  cassette player and climbs back up to the cockpit before turning on the comm link. She wedges the machine into the dash nearby and starts playing the Siren Song on full blast from the comm trembling in Din’s hand.

She looks out the window and watches as a glowing red sword comes down on Din. She screams silently, her hands flying to her mouth, but then the struggle suddenly stops. The sword is stopped in its tracks, unmoving against Din’s armor.

_ It’s working _ , she thinks.

She quickly gets back down to the hull and runs out, darting for Din.

Both men are stock still when she reaches them. She doesn’t have time to do anything because as she’s helping Din to stand, Maul’s eyes flash to her and he seems to be breaking through the spell she’s purposely put them under.

She gets Din into the ship as fast as possible, knowing that the further his comm was from Maul, the less effect it was going to have. As soon as they’re inside she shuts the ramp and sets Din on the floor of the hull. She doesn’t have time to get him in the cockpit and buckled in.

She hurries up the ladder once again and begins taking off, trying not to jostle Din too much but also trying to  _ hurry the hell up. _

There’s a moment where the Razer Crest falters, and her heart drops to her stomach, but they level out and she successfully sends them into hyperspace.

Once she’s sure they’re away from Darth Maul and Batuu, she cuts the feed to Din’s comm link and turns off the song. Cel removes Grogu from his pram and carries him down to the hull. She hears rustling as she heads down to Din.

He’s waking up.

She places the kid in his little hammock above the bed before kneeling down to Din, removing his helmet and placing it to the side. He’s blinking the fog away and looks around, gathering his surroundings.

“What happened?” He asks, wincing as he brings his glove to the bleeding cut on his head.

_ “Are you okay?”  _ She signs, looking over him for injuries. He’s wet and covered in mud and forest brush. There’s blood running from his temple where there’s a cut and one of his eyes is bruised. She sees a few tears in his clothing, but she can’t see anything life threatening.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” He replies, going to stand up.

She stands with him and signs,  _ “Good,” _ before pushing against his chest, making him stumble back,  _ “Then what in Maker’s name is  _ wrong  _ with you!” _

Din’s eyes are suddenly focused, wide with shock. Cel has never lost her temper like this before, “Mesh’la, what are you talking abo-”

_ “Don’t ‘mesh’la’ me. You said this was recon  _ only!” She signs, her hands flying as she signs. Her eyes are lit that brilliant shade of purple he remembers from when she was attacked back on Coruscant.

“It was!” Din hollars back, his arms flying above him, “But he was alone, I thought I would be able to kill him with one shot! I didn’t realize he was force sensitive until it was too late!” He turns and slams a fist into the wall of the ship, making Cel jump.

It’s quiet for a few moments, both of them taking the time to catch their breaths and calm down. 

“I’m sorry, cyare. I shouldn’t have yelled.” He tells her, still facing the wall.

Cel places a hand on his pauldron and turns him back to face her again, placing a hand on his cheek,  _ “A Jedi?”  _ She asks.

Din shakes his head, moving to sit on their bed, “Jedi’s use the force, the energy that runs through every single thing in the galaxy, and can manipulate it to their will. They’re a knightly order, trained to guard peace and justice in the universe.” He moves his hands down his thigh to stop at his knees, looking at the floor, “That man is no Jedi.”

Cel huffs and leans against Din, closing her eyes.

_ When did everything become so complicated?  _ She thinks to herself.

***

Just hours later Cel and Din lay in their bed. Cel is snuggled up into his chest, Din’s arms around her. Grogu is fast asleep in his pram at their feet. Din’s rubbing circles in her back when he speaks, breaking the long silence.

“Marry me.”

Cel’s head shoots up, her brows furrowed.

_ “What?” _

Din adjusts their position, sitting up with Cel in his lap, facing him.

“Marry me, Celestine,” He says, lifting one of her hands and kissing her knuckles, “Be my wife. Bear our children. Let us grow old together.”

Cel presses her hand to his forehead, checking for fever.  _ “But Maul-”  _ She signs, but Din takes her hands once more.

“Will pay for what he’s done,” He pulls her hands down and tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear, “But we have each other  _ now _ . I don’t want him to be the reason we can’t start a life together,” Din reaches for a small paper bag tucked between the bed and the wall. He reaches inside and pulls out a tiny sprkling object.

A ring. As brilliant as the beskar upon his own body.

The band of the ring is a darker metal, bent and etched to resemble intertwining branches. The branches separate at the top of the ring, creating an opening. In the opening is a gem the color of the sea back on Mon Cala. Inside the gem there seemed to be flecks of deep green, like the seaweed on the ocean floor.

Cel’s hands are still; speechless.

He carefully slides it onto Cel’s ring finger, kissing it once it’s placed, “I saw this back on Coruscant. It was why I had disappeared before…” He stops, not wanting to bring up the danger he had put both her and his son in, “Will you be my wife, take my name, and be the mother to my children?”

A stray tear rolls down Cel’s cheek, and she places a hand against his chest, kissing him softly before pulling back,  _ “I would like to have some sort of ceremony,” _ she leans back to click the button at the front of Grogu’s pram, causing the sides to snap shut _ , “But if you’d like, we can start on the children now.” _

Din beams and pulls her into a searing kiss, the mood immediately set. Before, there had been a large degree of need, of craving for contact. But now there was so much love that overflowed in their bodies that they felt as if their bodies would burst, and they shared their love with each other in the best way they knew how.

Their clothes quickly piled on the floor as their forms moved in time with each other upon the bed’s cushioned surface.

In the soft silence Din’s panting and moans break out of his throat in low grunts.

Cel fights to keep her eyes on the man in between her legs, but with each sway of his hips her eyes flutter shut and she’s seeing stars while gripping onto the sheets.

Din cannot look away even if he tried. His eyes were trained on the beautifully sensual female form beneath him.

Cel was all his, open and accepting and  _ his _ . Her hands made fists in the sheets between labored signs of  _ yes _ and  _ right there _ . Her mouth open, but silent. Her body rocking with his.

They continued this way for what seemed like hours. Slowing down when losing energy, but even when their movements dragged slowly, they still wouldn’t,  _ couldn’t,  _ stop. Then after a moment of rest Din would pick up the pace, bringing Cel to her climax before slowing again and the cycle starting over.

Eventually Din is lying on his back, panting.

Cel climbs over him and Din manages to lift an arm, his palm between Cel’s breasts.

“Cel, darling, we’ve already done it at least seven times,” he drags his hand down his face.

Cel pouts, her lower lip protruding and her eyes wide,  _ “But we have to make sure it worked!”  _ she signs with Din still holding her back.

He chuckles deeply, “I don’t know if I have any  _ more _ .” 

“ _ Just one more time? _ ” Her purple eyes look up to him with so much want, her lower lip between her teeth.

Din takes a deep breath and grips her waist firmly before flipping her onto her back, making her burst into silent giggles.


	5. Alterations and Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cel's body begins to change with pregnancy, and Din makes a life changing decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my wonderful co-author @/edgyvege (tumblr) for helping me create this and for creating the beautiful art for each chapter. Love you <3
> 
> WARNINGS: Mentions of death, doctor's visit (not graphic).

Song - Welcome to Wonderland - <https://youtu.be/NmMpPeCFaiY>

They don’t immediately go back to Navarro after fleeing Batuu. The time on the ship gives them brief solace since they are glaringly aware that Darth Maul definitely knows why a Mandalorian showed up out of nowhere for an assassination attempt; Cel’s stunt to save Din made that clear.

The Mandalorian was protecting a Siren. Maul heard the melodic song of a Siren with his own ears. He saw that iridescent tint of her skin as she dragged the Mandalorian back onto their ship.

They stay in hyperspace for two months, only stopping for fuel and supplies when absolutely needed. Cel cherished these times where she could stretch her growing body and get some fresh air while walking around a bit with a bored Grogu.

True to Doctor Caddel’s word, Cel’s belly grows  _ quickly _ .

She is nine weeks into her pregnancy with an obvious baby bump. She isn’t super big, but she’s obvious.

If it wasn’t for the obvious growth of her stomach there were still many other ways Cel would be reminded daily of her changing body. At first it was tight clothes that she had to modify. Then it was being reluctantly cut off from the cockpit altogether with a promise from Din to spend as much time with her as he can down below. Din can even see her energy with Grogu declining and the amount of sleep she needed increasing each day.

Din decides to head to Denon when Cel begins feeling ill. She should probably see Doctor Caddel anyways. 

He lands them in the same place as before, making sure Cel is completely covered by her cloak before they step out in the sun with Grogu in his usual bag strapped across Mando’s chest and tucked under his cape. 

He helps her down the street, noticing her small struggle with keeping her belly hidden. She’s going to need a bigger cloak soon.

He walks her into the familiar small office and the receptionist immediately recognizes them. She stands and beckons them to the back with her, showing them to a private room. Mando asks her if she can watch Grogu, offering her a small bag of credits. She denies the credits but happily accepts the child in her arms, her eyes lighting up at the sight of him.

“I will let the doctor know you are here.” She says, smiling kindly as she shuts the door with Grogu in tow.

Din removes a glove and takes one of Cel’s hands, holding it in his own.

“I’m sure everything is fine, cyar’ika,” He coos, rubbing circles on the back of her hand with his thumb.

Cel looks up from where she’s rubbing her tummy and smiles weakly before glancing around the room quickly.

They wait a few more minutes before the door opens again and the darker man from before enters.

“Nice to see you again, Cel. I see it’s definitely under better circumstances,” Doctor Caddel says, gesturing toward her swollen belly before he sits in his own seat.

Cel smiles and squeezes Mando’s hand.

“She’s about two months along,” Mando says, “She’s been doing pretty well, but she’s recently fallen ill. I’m worried for both of them.”

Doctor Caddel nods and stands, pulling on a pair of gloves and stepping towards his patient. 

Mando pulls away from her to give the doctor some space to work.

Doctor Caddel places his hands on her tummy, gently palpating the hardened bump.

Cel suddenly feels a different pressure, but she isn’t sure if she imagined it because it was so quick. It happens again as the doctor palpates the side of her belly and she jumps, looking up at the older man.

“What’s wrong?” Mando asks when he sees her sudden movement.

Doctor Caddel doesn’t immediately answer Mando and instead looks at Cel, “Did you feel that?”

She nods, her eyes wide.

“That is your baby kicking.”

Cel gasps and Mando is quick to step up from his chair. Doctor Caddel moves to the side and lets him stand next to Cel. She takes his ungloved hand and places it on her belly where she last felt the kick. 

He stands there for a few moments, waiting. He’s about to ask what they were talking about when he feels a tiny _thump_ against his hand, making his breath catch in his throat.

He’s looking directly at her belly, so he doesn’t see her beaming at him. He feels tears biting at his eyes and he has a ball of emotion in his throat and it’s making it  _ so hard _ for him to breath but he doesn’t even care. He doesn’t care because  _ that’s his baby.  _ That’s their baby and it’s moving!

Mando hasn’t ever experienced something like this and he firmly believes there’s nothing that could compare to this feeling.

He stays there, now with both naked hands on Cel’s exposed belly as Doctor Caddel continues to move swiftly around them, checking her temperature, pulse, and skin.

When he’s done, he sits back on his seat and removes his gloves, waiting for Mando to take a seat as well.

“Good news!” Doctor Caddel says, clapping his hands together, “Cel and the baby are perfectly fine. Cel is just experiencing the Siren equivalent of morning sickness. Your estimate seems correct, that she is about two and a half months into her pregnancy,” He looks at Mando, “That is equivalent to about five months of a human pregnancy.”

Nobody can see it, but Din’s eyes blow wide in shock, _ “Five??” _

Doctor Caddel nods, “Like I said before, Siren fetal growth is exponentially faster than human fetal growth. It slows towards the end of the pregnancy, but still faster nonetheless. If you’d like, we can take some images of the baby and learn the sex?”

Cel’s eyes light up and she immediately starts nodding her head excitedly.

Mando chuckles, “I guess that’s a yes.”

Doctor Caddel disappears for a few minutes, coming back with a hovering cart toting medical equipment. He places it next to the chair that Cel is in and rolls his chair closer. He rubs a gel on her belly and grabs a small device, gently pushing it into the bump.

It doesn’t take long to spot the baby for any of them, since she’s so far along. 

Doctor Caddel speaks as he does his exam, “Ten fingers and ten toes. Definitely in its human form.”

And that was not something Mando or Cel had even thought about. So thank Maker for that. 

“A strong heartbeat and in the correct position. And it seems to me that you two have a healthy baby girl growing in there.”

Cel’s jaw drops and Mando’s mouth goes dry.

_ “A girl?”  _ Cel signs, forgetting that the doctor couldn’t read her language.

Mando is able to speak up, albeit roughly, “A girl?”

Doctor Caddel nods, “A girl. The picture isn’t as clear as it normally is, Sirens’ wombs are a lot thicker than humans’, which reminds me,” He says as he prints out a small picture of the ultrasound, handing it to Cel, “Towards the end of the pregnancy, Cel, you might become quite uncomfortable. I don’t have much experience with Sirens who carried a term baby in their human form. Assuming your body is defaulting, wanting to carry the child in the water, you may become sick easier than if you weren’t pregnant.”

_ “What do you mean?” _

“What do you mean?” Mando echoes her.

“How long has she been out of water?” He asks. 

“About six months,” He says, remembering how he took Cel to a planet with hot springs after the loss of their first baby, to help her body heal.

Doctor Caddel nods, “Carrying an infant to term in her human form, Cel’s body may revert its tolerance and suddenly need a transition to its Siren form to heal itself and alleviate pressure. It is much easier for a Siren to carry in their natural form.”

He offers the rest of the information he has, answering their questions, before ultimately shaking their hands and sending them off with a medication to help Cel with any nausea.

It’s dark by the time they collect Grogu and head back to the Razer Crest, and Din can tell that Cel is wiped out. He helps her into bed, kissing her forehead and tucking her in before heading back up to the cockpit with Grogu to fly them back to Navarro.

***

Mando is in the doorway of the cantina, watching Cel silently laugh as Karga plays catch with Grogu. Karga keeps walking away to pick up the metal ball when Grogu continues to throw it wide after easily catching it with The Force.

“I’m a little insulted that I wasn’t told about this when it happened,” Cara says, walking up to Mando from behind. “I mean, when you found out she was carrying. Not when it  _ happened _ .” She makes air quotes.

“We… got into a bit of trouble. I didn’t want to make any unnecessary contact that could pin our location.”

She chooses not to immediately comment on that, instead choosing to continue with her previous statement, “Well. I guess I can’t say I’m surprised. I’ve seen how you are with Grogu, and even though you’ve always got that damned helmet on I can tell you’re looking at her like she’s hung every moon in the skies. She looks at you the same way.”

Mando nods, not taking his eyes off of his family.

He doesn’t know why he says it. He’s been thinking it to himself since he learned the baby’s sex. But it comes out of his mouth without warning.

“I think I’m going to hang it all up.”

Cara stills next to him, caught off guard. The two are silent for a few moments before she finally speaks again, “You mean-”

“I mean... I want to give her a sustainable life. I want us to settle down somewhere, raise our kids, and be happy. I can’t do that if I’m still hunting.”

“And Darth Maul?” Cara grits her teeth. 

“You mean the Sith?” He says with a dark chuckle, “Maybe we can hide from him. I just-” He cuts himself off, seeing Cel pick up their son and begin dancing with him, “I can’t keep putting them in danger. It has to stop. And if that means putting away the armor…”

Cara nods and responds, “I get it. But she won’t be safe unless he’s dead. Neither of you.”

“But-”

“I have an idea.”


	6. Nights Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Din and Cel have an important conversation about their future. Cara ends up with babysitting duty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my wonderful co-author @/edgyvege (tumblr) for helping me create this and for creating the beautiful art for each chapter. 
> 
> WARNINGS: Smut, mentions of death.

Song: Horns- [https://youtu.be/Bs9PGQga6ic](https://youtu.be/Bs9PGQga6ic)

The couple is lying in bed that night.

Cel is lying on her side, Din behind her with one arm propping himself up and the other around her waist, hand on her belly.

It’s one of his favorite things now, feeling his baby kick.

“ _ She likes your voice.” _ Cel signs with her hands up slightly for Din to see.

“Hm?” He brushes his lips against her shoulder.

“ _ Most times when you’re talking she will move, look, _ ” Cel moves his palms under her shirt and presses firmly to her warm skin, “ _ Say something. _ ”

Din takes a deep breath, “I’m hanging up my armor. I’m going to give you a good life. One you deserve.”

Cel rolls over suddenly, making Din sit up to give her space.

_ “You’re going to stop hunting?”  _ She asks.

Din nods with a huff, running a hand down her hair, “Yes. I can’t continue hunting down Maul if it means continuing to put you in danger,” He averts his eyes from Cel’s gaze, focusing on her belly, “I can protect you by hiding you. I can put up my armor and we can hide on some water planet.” He says as he outstretches his arm before dropping it to his side, slightly exacerbated. 

Cel smiles, feeling pity for her partner. She sits up and brings him in for a short kiss before letting go and signing again, _ “I don’t want to live a life of hiding. I don’t want that for our daughter or Grogu. And anyways, we’re in danger as long as he lives,” _ Cel finds herself looking to Din very seriously, “ _ He won’t stop until I’m dead,”  _ She lowers her head and then softly signs, “ _ Like my family. _ ”

Din doesn’t move, his eyes just fall to her lap, “Do you want to go after him? Are you sure?” He asks, looking up to her again.

_ “Yes. I want to know that we are safe, not always having to look over our shoulders. It’s not a life to live. Not one for raising a family… You did say you wanted multiple children, right?” _ She pokes his chest and manages to get a real smile from the man across from her, “ _ We must protect our legacy. _ ”

Din nods and moves so that he’s straddling her thighs, leaning down to lift Cel’s shirt and kiss her belly.

“Then that is what we’ll do. We will end Darth Maul, and then build our life together.”

Cel smiles and he leans himself up to her face, kissing her sweetly.

The sweetness only lasts so long though, and soon Cel is pawing at him, pulling at his shirt and pants as he nips his way down her clavicle.

She’s moving her hands rhythmically in his peripherals and he looks up to see her signing with her eyes blown wide with lust,  _ “Please, Din. I need you.” _

“Now?” Din looks down at her bump, “Won’t she… feel me?”

Cel smirks, “ _ You know that’s not how it works, right? _ ” She silently giggles.

“... I know,” He laughs too and presses another kiss to her lips, “I’ll just not be as rough.”

Cel pouts playfully.

He rolls his eyes and smiles, moving himself off the bed to reattach his armor.

_ “Where are you going?”  _ Cel asks, her hands still out and hovering where she had been grasping at his clothes.

Din presses the button on Grogu’s pram and syncs it to himself.

“Taking Grogu to his babysitter.”

***

Cara is doing some paperwork.  _ The life of a marshal,  _ she muses to herself.

Suddenly there’s a knock on her office door, pulling her attention from the work in front of her.

“Come in!” She calls, looking up to see who was knocking at this time of night.

As soon as she sees Mando with the pram in tow, she leans back against her chair with a raised brow.

“Really?”

“Please?” Mando asks, helmet slightly tilted.

“You know she’s already pregnant, right?” Cara smirks.

Mando huffs, crossing his arms, “I’m sorry. Do you want to tell the  _ very pregnant  _ woman in my bed ‘no’ for me?”

Cara rolls her eyes, and leans forward again, “Only because you asked so nicely, and because I’m afraid of an angry Cel. Not an angry Mando.” She points at him. 

Now it’s Mando’s turn to roll his eyes. Though she can’t see it, she senses it and smiles.

“Thank you.” He says, de-syncing the pram and pushing it towards Cara before turning to leave.

The last thing he hears as he closes the door behind him is, “Don’t break anything this time!”

***

Cel is waiting on the side of the bed for Din to come back. She doesn’t know why but she feels like she is burning from the inside out with need. She needs him to come back now.

As if on cue, the door flies open only to slam back shut after Din enters. He removes his armor and clothes as quickly as possible before making his way over to Cel, crashing his lips to hers as the last piece of beskar falls.

She meets him halfway and grabs at his brown locks and  _ pulls,  _ eliciting a most sensual moan from him that goes straight to her clit.

He grabs her waist and walks her towards the bed, her feet stepping quickly between his, and starts removing her pants and shirt within seconds. She falls onto the bed with Din following her. She’s fully naked below him, her swollen belly between them. She looks ethereal, and he’s  _ so fucking hard.  _

“Fuck, cyare. You’re fucking beautiful.” He whispers, his hands moving to her enlarged breasts and squeezing.

Her eyes roll back in her head as she bites her lip, and Din continues his attack on her chest by sucking on one nipple while rolling the other between his fingers. She’s bucking into him, clawing his back. He moves to the opposite side and she gasps as he bites down.

He sucks as he pulls away, leaving a delicious tingling sensation connecting from her nipple to her core. He puts his pointer and middle fingers in her mouth, looking down at her.

“Suck.” He demands with a stern and deep voice radiating from his chest.

She complies and sucks on his fingers, toying with them with her tongue. All while keeping her eyes open and on him. She would do anything he asked for.

He groans and feels his cock twitch at the sight below him.

He’s not paying attention to any of her movements other than her mouth, so he jumps when he feels her hand wrap around him, immediately moving her thumb to spread his precum, making him slick. 

Din’s muscles give out for a moment, the wave of ecstasy knocking him backwards and his fingers popping from Cel’s lips. He has to catch himself with his hands, and he just stays there for a moment relishing in the feeling of her soft hand pumping him.

She shifts under him and suddenly she’s gently squeezing his balls and he has to bring a hand to his mouth to bite and muffle the sound that’s fighting to leave his throat.

He swears his eyes roll back so far he sees his own skull.

There’s a tap on his thigh and he looks down at Cel who’s signing to him.

_ “I want to hear you. Don’t stop yourself.”  _

He nods and pulls his hand away from his mouth, a deep moan ripping from his throat.

She’s still pumping him, using every bit of precum to keep him slick, as she uses her other hand to experiment different movements with his testicles.

“Fuck…  _ Fuck Celestine!”  _ He yells in between cries of pleasure, bucking himself into her hands.

She begins rolling her thumb around his smoldering head and he cums without warning, his hips jerking into the air.

He spills himself all over the both of them in hot strings. He has to still himself for a few moments to catch his breath and collect himself, but when he looks back at Cel, who’s got a finger in her mouth  _ tasting him,  _ he becomes hard again almost immediately.

He grabs her wrists and pins them above her head, leaning over her and coming face to face. He holds her there easily as she complies with every move.

“That wasn’t fair.” He growls.

Cel only shrugs her shoulders and looks up at him with her big purple doe eyes, peering through her lashes.

“Are you going to be a good girl from now on?” He asks, squeezing her wrists.

She nods and he lets go, moving one hand to her pussy and pressing onto her clit, rubbing it in slow circles.

Her breathing picks up and he moves his fingers faster before using his other hand to plunge two thick fingers inside of her.

She gasps and grabs at his shoulders as her back arches. She takes a few calming breaths before signing,  _ “Another.” _

He adds a third finger, pumping in and out.

“You’re so fucking wet, mesh’la. So fucking wet and I’ve barely touched you. Look at you making a mess of the bed,  _ soaking  _ my hand,” he adds emphasis to the word by curling his fingers and hitting the spot inside of her that he’s memorized by now, making her hips thrust into his hand, “This all for me?”

She nods manically with her eyes securely shut, “ _ Because of you _ .”

“Look at me.” He tells her, stopping his attack on her clit to hold her chin firmly.

She complies and looks into his eyes, signing, “ _ Please.” _

“Please what? Use your words.” He tells her, his grip on her chin tightening.

She huffs and tries again,  _ “Please fuck me, Din. I need you inside me.” _

“How do you want it, sweet girl?”

Instead of signing she slowly moves her body. She rolls over and lowers her chest to the bed with her ass up and exposed to him.

“Beautiful,” He purrs, smacking her ass with a resounding  _ crack  _ that echoes through the room.

He pulls her up and lines himself up with her, teasing her clit with the head of his cock before slowly pushing into her.

Her hands fist into the sheets and she gasps loudly, pushing herself further onto him.

Once he’s fully inside of her, he pulls out and thrusts again, still keeping a slow pace. They both like it rough, but he’s afraid to do anything too harsh while she’s this pregnant.

Cel isn’t having it though, and is moving herself against him at a faster pace than what Din had set.

He removes himself from her and leans forward, grabbing her hair and pulling her head back to him. He speaks lewdly in her ear. “I thought you were going to be a good girl?” 

She signs  _ “sorry”  _ with one hand, and Din sits back up but doesn’t release his hold on her hair, “ _ I’ll be good, I promise. _ ”

He penetrates her once more and speeds up his pace a bit, hoping that’ll give Cel what she wants for the time being. He moves faster, but more shallow than he was before.

He’s slowly building up speed and pressure, giving Cel plenty of time to use their safety signal if it becomes too much.

After a few minutes of this, of him playing with her clit and her breasts, he feels her begin to sag beneath him.

“Cyar’ika?” He asks, placing his hands on her hips as she lowers to the bed and rolls back onto her back.

_ “I feel too scrunched up.”  _ She signs.

He kisses her knee, his hands moving to her ankles, “Do you want to stop?” He asks, trying to catch his breath.

She shakes her head,  _ “No,”  _ She seems to stop and think before continuing, _ “Can I sit on top?” _

Now  _ that’s  _ enticing.

Din moves, lying down on his back and helping Cel to settle onto him, her back to him.

“Okay, move when you’re ready.” He tells her. And he’s proud of himself because they haven’t fucked in this position before and it feels  _ so good  _ and he really needs her to move, but he isn’t going to let her know that. At least the last part.

After a few moments she starts to bounce on him and a sinful moan escapes his lips.

This seems to spur her on, and she starts to bounce faster, her hands resting just above his knees.

Din’s hands fly to her hips and he grips onto her for dear life because there is no way he is going to last long in this position. He inhales deeply and feels the shimmer of arousal grow in his chest, the same feeling he had the first time Cel’s pheromones had taken him. He guides her with a steady rhythm, his eyes closed, focusing on breathing through the sparks in his chest and remaining coherent. The sparks become less sharp and fade into the background. Din gropes her tightly as he fights for control over the high her pheromones gave him. With his grip he holds her steady and starts to hammer from below.

She seems to like the change in pace because now she’s arching her back and holding onto her breasts as he moves faster.

He can hear her panting and he begins to thrust into her, losing his self control.

“Cel… Cyare...  _ Fuck  _ I-”

Suddenly she lurches forward grabbing onto his legs as her body seizes, her walls clamping down on him and forcing him over the edge.

They stay in that position for several moments before she carefully moves off of him, their combined juices dripping from her body.

She crawls up next to Din and cuddles up into his side. He rolls over to give her a long, sweet kiss before carrying her to the shower to clean her up.

***

“Thanks for the babysitting job last night, by the way.” Cara says as Cel lifts a large black cloak to inspect it.

Cel’s hands are busy with the material, so she doesn’t answer except with a shy smile.

“I didn’t even think pregnant women liked doing that. It seems like it would be… Uncomfortable.”

Cel pays the vendor for the cloak and switches out the one she currently has on. It’s much larger and fits much better around her growing belly. 

_ “Well, other pregnant women haven’t slept with  _ **_him_ ** _.”  _ She signs with a sly smile.

Cara rolls her eyes and takes Cel’s old cloak to hold it.

“ _ When he holds me I feel so much peace. And when he takes me it just feels so  _ **_good_ ** _... When his body is moving with mine- _ ”

Cara bats Cel’s arms out of the air, “Okay okay, I definitely did not need to know  _ any  _ of that. Stars, thank Maker I’m the only one out here who can read your language.”

Cel’s lips pull into a tight smile, her cheeks blushing furiously,  _ “Sorry. Got carried away. I don’t get to talk about him to anyone.” _

“You can talk to me about him, I just don’t want to know about your bedroom activities. Especially since I’m being forced to watch over the womp rat whenever the two of you decide to go at it while you’re here.”

Cel silently giggles,  _ “Sorry.” _

“Yeah, sure you are,” Cara smiles and pats Cel’s shoulder, “Let’s grab you a few more things and then head back to your-” At this point Cel tucks a stray hair back into her hood and Cara notices the ring on her friend’s finger, it catching a ray of sunlight and glinting, “Um, hold on. Excuse me?” They stop in the middle of the street and Cara grabs Cel’s left hand, pulling it close to inspect the ring, “Did he propose to you?!”

Cel looks at Cara and smiles brightly, nodding.

“When was this? And why am I the last to know everything?” She complains.

Cel continues walking and regales the story of their engagement, and what caused it to happen when it did as they continue through the marketplace. She makes Cel promise to at least update her with really important stuff by comms. 

Cel takes Cara’s arm when she sees the small boutique they had visited a while back, where she had gotten that black lace set that Din ended up tearing, “ _ Do you think we could stop there again? _ ”

Cara raises a brow wondering  _ how _ , when she thinks she has a good read on Cel, something else comes out of left field, “Sure, didn’t get enough last time?” Cara follows her through the entryway.

_ “The pair I had… Got torn?”  _ Cel smiles and she raises her shoulders and tilts her head to add to the questioning tone.

“Are you asking me?” Cara laughs, “Come on, let’s get you something comfortable at least… and durable.”

Afterward they drop off Cel’s purchases at the inn that she and Mando are staying in, they head towards the cantina with Cel having changed into some of the comfortable maternity clothes she had purchased. Cel runs her hands over the soft fabric that pulls high over her belly button thinking,  _ this is much better. _

When they arrive, Cel notices the doors are shut. Cara looks around to make sure nobody is following them before she opens the doors and lets them both inside.

Cara locks the doors behind them and Cel looks around to see Din and Karga at a table with another woman; Grogu sitting in her lap.


End file.
